Applied Linguistics 2009

[jthh]

Because this website doesn't allow one to search for the word "applied" (for reasons which are now obvious to me), I thought I'd start a thread for those of us who are applying to applied linguistics or related programs (SLA, TESL, etc). I'd be curious to hear about others' experiences. My interests are ESL writing and World Englishes (or English as an International Language, or what have you). I applied to 5 programs - I was accepted at UBC and Purdue, rejected by Penn State, and am waiting to hear back from two different programs at Arizona State (one is their new interdisciplinary app ling program, the other is rhetoric and linguistics in the English dept). I'm having a hard time deciding between UBC and Purdue as those were my top two choices, and they both have a lot going for them. I'd love to hear if anyone else is looking at these schools or others in this field, or just to start an app ling-focused discussion in this thread!

[Tugboat Captain]

I was accepted to the new Applied Linguistics program at ASU. I haven't heard from Purdue yet, which is probably not a good sign. I also was accepted at Northern Arizona University.

[jthh]

Hey, another applied linguist! Congrats on your acceptances. I was also accepted at ASU a couple of days ago. I've actually made the decision to go with UBC because they offered superior funding, but it was very hard to turn down Purdue -- their faculty is amazing. Any thoughts on which direction you're leaning now?

[Tugboat Captain]

I am mostly interested in second language writing, and both Purdue and ASU have well know specialists in the area. Paul Matsuda at ASU has a really great reputation in the field, and I think he is really the top scholar in the U.S. in this area. I applied to the PhD ESL concentration in the English Department at Purdue, where Tony Silva is. Did you apply to the Foreign Language and Literatures program?

[jthh]

L2 writing is my interest as well, and I applied to both of those programs for the reasons you mentioned. Actually, that's why I applied to 2 programs at ASU -- Matsuda seems to be mostly based in the rhetoric and linguistics program in the English dept., which I wasn't accepted to (though of course he is also among the faculty for app lx). In fact, I didn't realize Matsuda taught in a separate program until I met his wife, who teaches in the applied linguistics program. The funny thing is, she encouraged me to also apply to the English department because she said funding was limited for applied ling -- yet I got into that program and not English.

I was accepted by the ESL program at Purdue, and like I said, it was gut-wrenching to turn them down. Silva, Berns, and Atkinson are all absolutely top-notch scholars. For me it had to come down to location and funding - UBC had the edge for both. Their faculty is really good, too, and another L2 writing specialist, Ryuko Kubota, just joined the department this year. Good luck with Purdue, I do hope you make it!

[Tugboat Captain]

Thanks. Apparently they are still figuring out who will get the remaining spots at Purdue. Did you officially decline their offer?

UBC looks like a great choice, I would love to live in BC.

[psycholinguist]

I was accepted by the ESL program at Purdue, and like I said, it was gut-wrenching to turn them down. Silva, Berns, and Atkinson are all absolutely top-notch scholars. For me it had to come down to location and funding - UBC had the edge for both. Their faculty is really good, too, and another L2 writing specialist, Ryuko Kubota, just joined the department this year. Good luck with Purdue, I do hope you make it!

I don't know anything about UBC's linguistics programs, but I grew up near Vancouver, so if you have any really general questions about the area, let me know!

[jthh]

Yeah, I have officially declined Purdue.

Thanks, psycholinguist, I was actually wondering if you could recommend a cheap-ish nice-ish neighborhood (maybe those are mutually exclusive), housing-wise. My wife and I are hoping for campus housing, but the waitlist is pretty long.

[psycholinguist]

I've never lived in Vancouver on my own, so I don't know much about housing-prices, but the city does tend to run on the expensive side in general. I'd definitely check out the 'Vancouver, BC' thread over in 'City Guide'; there's some good advice over there about housing!

[jthh]

Hey Tugboat Captain, any decision yet?

[Tugboat Captain]

I'll be attending the Applied Linguistics program at ASU, with Paul Matsuda as my advisor. I'm really excited to work with him, and it sounds like there is a lot of freedom in the program. My interests lie somewhere between L1 comp and L2 comp like Matsuda...also ASU has a lot of people interested in bilingualism and language policy, which is good because I am interested in Generation 1.5 issues as well.

I suppose I'll get used to the heat!

[Nel]

I'm in applied linguistics at UCLA but I've been on an exchange in UBC for about 6 months in 2001.

Great place! Loved the surroundings, especially the towering pines and little animals running about the place. I deemed Vancouver as one of the most livable cities in the world.

[jthh]

The location was definitely a factor for UBC. I wasn't too keen on dragging my wife to Arizona or Indiana...

That being said, hearty congratulations to Tugboat Cap. Matsuda is amazing and working with him is bound to be an enormous boon to your work and future career. Maybe I'll see you at SSLW 2009!